1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of wetsuits and boots/gloves used for water sports, especially those with a requirement of keeping dry while being worn in underwater sports. The new method is applied to adhere each piece of the panels of the wetsuit or boots/gloves, free from the problems of leaking or breaking caused by sewing or stitching, and the new method provides the finished wetsuit or boots/gloves with a high level of dryness that makes the wearer feel dry and comfortable.
The method includes making an adhesion to form a cover, with the width of 1-25 mm and thickness of 0.3-1 mm, on the seams of the garments outer and/or inner surface in order to make each piece of the panels of the garment adhere completely with no sewing or stitching. The new method includes the additional step of putting the adhered garment into an oven at a temperature of 80-130° C., and for a time of 5-60 minutes, (before the step of attaching any rubber reinforcements in the case of boots) to make the adhesion vulcanized and cross-linked that forms a soft and firm cover over the seams and that gives products a higher strength than sewing or stitching and avoids the defects of leaking, breaking or discomfort caused by needles holes, thread breaking or unraveling from sewing or stitching.
2. Background Art
Wetsuits and boots/gloves, used for water sports, are comprised of several sheets of rubber sponge material and employ appropriate cutting, gluing, sewing or stitching steps and then attaching any rubber reinforcements on the boots and curing.
Since the needles used in sewing or stitching cause holes which weaken the rubber sponge and generate the defect of leaking, the wet garment makes the boots/gloves or wetsuit wearer feel cold and uncomfortable. Some manufacturers use the step of sewing or stitching employing a blind stitch process to reduce the impact of needles holes. But the problem of leaking is not fully resolved, and raises the issue of breaking or unraveling, that still cause the garment to be wet and cause the wetsuit wearer to feel inflexible and uncomfortable.
Some water garment manufacturers have developed the process of using a sealant, tape or liquid glue, to cover or replace the surface of the stitched rubber sponge in order to overcome the defects caused by needle holes or sewing threads. But the sealant increases the thickness of the seam, (glue plus threads plus sealant), and that impacts the aesthetic appearance. Moreover the sealant does not have high elasticity and thus decreases the stretchability of rubber sponge.
Some wetsuit manufacturers have developed the technology of sealant to replace steps of the process of sewing or stitching. The manufacturers call it “non-stitch wetsuit” but it is actually a “partial non-stitch wetsuit”, to avoid the defects caused by needle holes, or sewing threads. However, the sealant cannot be used to apply on weak points such as the crotch area of the wetsuit where the steps of sewing or stitching are still employed and even though the defect caused by needle holes or sewing threads is reduced, it is not fully solved.
The method of the present invention can satisfy the professional end-users' demands for solving these deficiencies.